The Ones
by myshoesarecrocs
Summary: A series of one-shots involving everyone's favorite, Klance! (More summary to come, but I have to go to work!) Lance/Keith
1. The One with a Sick Lance

**The One with a Sick Lance**

* * *

It was routine for Lance to always sleep in on a Saturday, so it was also routine for Keith to kick down his door and drag the Blue Paladin out of bed. (When he wasn't in it, that was...) They had agreed to do a little morning training on their off days to stay on their toes, but getting Lance out of bed was enough training for Keith in one day.

The black haired boy listened to his footsteps echoing through the halls as he made his way to Lance's room, still a little tired himself. Their last battle had left them all exhausted, especially Lace, so he'd been contemplating on whether or not to tell him that they should skip training for that day. When they'd arrived home, Lance had seemed a little off to Keith, going straight to his room instead of getting something to eat. When Keith had tried to bring food to his room, he hadn't gotten an answer.

He clenched the fist that was shoved inside his sweatshirt pocket, he should have made sure Lance was alright instead of leaving him alone. He had taken the brunt of a strong blast during their fight, and Keith swore he'd seen him walking with a slight limp.

When he finally arrived at Lance's room, he softly knocked on the door and waited for a response. Usually Lance would give him some kind of remark, cute or sarcastic, to let him know he could come in. This time he didn't, and Keith was left standing in front of the door unsure of whether or not he should go in. Maybe he wasn't there?

He knocked again, leaning in close to the door, "Lance? Can I come in?"

There was still no response, and Keith suddenly felt uneasy. It was unlike Lance to leave him hanging, even if he didn't want to talk, which didn't happen often. Biting the inside of his cheek, he tried the handle. It was unlocked.

He quietly pushed it open, peeking his head inside. The lump under Lance's blue comforter confirmed that he was there, and Keith slipped inside and closed the door. The only light illuminating the space was filtering in through the closed blinds, making it hard for Keith to see.

"Lance, you dipwad, wake up." Keith said from his spot by the door, "It's six thirty."

Lance still didn't say anything.

An icy feeling spread its way through Keith's body, and suddenly a million bad thoughts were flowing through his mind. What if he'd been impacted by the blast more than he'd let on? What if it did something to his body that didn't affect him until hours later?

Keith moved forward quickly in his worried state, tripping over something on the floor, and tumbled onto the bed and Lance's body. He heard a muffled cry and propped himself up on his hands, still half on and half off the bed, "Lance?"

"Ow, you moron." Lance's voice said in the dark, and Keith sighed in relief that he'd heard it, "That hurts! What's the big idea?"

"You weren't answering me." Keith whispered loudly.

"I was sleeping?"

"Usually you wake up when I knock."

Lance sat up, rubbing his eyes, and looked down at Keith, who was sprawled in his lap, "Wait. Where you," he grinned, "worried about me?"

"As if." Keith said, rolling his eyes and ignoring the fact that Lance's bare chest was inches away from him.

"It's okay if you were," Lance put a hand on his lover's cheek, "that's what normal boyfriends do."

"Tch." Keith sat up to face him, crossing his arms, "I was just coming to tell you that we should skip training today."

"Good," Lance slumped his shoulders, his happy expression evaporating into a green one, "I'm not feeling well. That's why I didn't answer, I sleep like a rock when I get sick."

"You're sick?" Keith asked, holding a hand to Lance's forehead, "What kind of sick?"

"The kind where I'll probably throw up on you sometime today if you stay here." Lance flopped back down against his pillows, "You should leave before you get sick, too."

"You have a fever." Keith said, half to himself, "Do you feel hot?"

"I do every day." Lance said, flashing finger guns.

Keith pinched the bridge of his nose, "Leave it to you to joke around when you're sick."

"Seriously Keith, I'm fine. Don't worry about it."

"I'd feel like dirt if I didn't stay here with you."

Lance shook his head, "I sleep a lot when I'm sick, so there's no reason for you to stay here. I'll probably sleep for the rest of the day, and then I'll be good as new in the morning."

Keith looked down at the floor, wondering if there was really nothing he could do for Lance. He was supposed to be his partner, right?

"Hey," Keith felt a pull at his sleeve and looked down to see Lance tugging it. Flicking his gaze up to Lance's, the other said, "don't look like like that."

"Are you sure there's nothing I can do?" Keith asked.

"Positive."

Keith closed the door to Lance's room, making his way to the kitchen and feeling deflated. Ever since he and Lance had become a couple, he liked doing things with him. It didn't have to be every waking minute, but they had certain rituals that they did together. For starters, they always got morning coffee together, which Keith was on his way to do alone. How was he going to spend his entire day without Lance?

Usually there wasn't anyone in the kitchen when they got there, but this morning Keith was semi glad to see that Shiro was already pouring himself a cup of coffee. The Black Paladin looked up as Keith entered, lifting his mug in greeting, "Morning Keith."

"Morning." He muttered, retrieving his mug from the cupboard. He poured himself a glass, still lost in thought on what he could do to make Lance feel better. In his momentary lapse of mind, he didn't notice as the coffee spilled over the mug until it was burning his fingers. Swearing to himself, he instinctively let go of the mug and it went crashing to the floor.

"Whoa!" Shiro jumped up from the table he was seated at, moving to help Keith who was quickly picking up the broken pieces of his mug, "What happened?"

"I burned my hand." Keith mumbled, tossing the pieces into the garbage. He turned to find Shiro already wiping up the spilled coffee with paper towel, "You didn't have to do that."

"Is everything okay?" Shiro asked, noticing Keith's sour mood.

"Yeah, I guess I'm just tired." Keith said, moving toward the cupboard to try and find a new mug. In the end, he just grabbed Lance's.

"Can you make more coffee for Lance when he rolls out of bed?" Shiro asked, throwing the paper towel into the garbage.

"He's not feeling good, so he said he'll probably be sleeping for the rest of the day." Keith said with his back to Shiro as he poured himself new coffee.

"Oh you already saw him?"

"Yeah, only because I was going to tell him I wanted to skip training this morning." Keith explained, feeling his cheeks grow warm. He and Lance hadn't told the other Paladins about their relationship yet, trying to find a good time to deliver the news.

"I see." Shiro said, smiling to himself. Of course he and the others knew, it was blatantly obvious.

They both sat in silence drinking their coffee, Shiro flipping through a book. Keith drummed his fingers on the table, staring at the brown liquid in his cup. It was going to be such a long day.

"You know, Keith." Shiro spoke up after a while, causing him to look up, "Maybe you should bring something for Lance to drink. We don't want him to get dehydrated, right?"

Keith shot up, why hadn't he thought of that? "You're right! What should I bring him?"

"Hmm, maybe some light soda?" Shiro suggested, "It's easy on the stomach."

"Good idea." Keith nodded, heading toward the fridge. He grabbed a can of soda off the top shelf and said, "I'll go give this to him, then."

"Okay, bye." Shiro said nonchalantly from his spot at the table. He glanced up from his book as the Red Paladin left and shook his head, muttering to himself, "He's hopeless."

When Keith got to Lance's room, he opened the door without knocking. Moving immediately to the side of the bed that Lance was facing on his side, he gently shook his shoulder until his eyelids fluttered open, "Keith?"

"You should drink this." Keith said softly, holding out the can of soda he had, "So you don't get dehydrated."

Lance took it from him with a smile, "Thanks." Popping it open, he took a couple light sips, before laying his head back down on the pillow, "That tasted good." He mumbled, before slipping back into sleep.

Keith knelt next to the bed for a couple more minutes watching Lance's sleeping form. His face was so peaceful that it almost made him look younger. Placing his hand on Lance's cheek, he noticed that he was warmer than before. Was that normal? He tried to think of all the times he had gotten sick. Had he been this warm?

Rising to his feet, he left the room even more at a loss than before. He aimlessly roamed the halls with his hand held to his chin, lost in thought.

That was how Pidge found him as she was on her way to take a shower. "Hey Keith, what's up?" She asked decked out in her green bathrobe and shower cap.

He looked at her oddly before saying, "Not much."

"You look stressed."

He shrugged, "I'm fine."

She wanted to push him a bit further, but decided to let it go, stepping around him to continue on to the shower. "Hey Pidge." She heard him say, and turned around curiously, "Have you ever been really warm when you're sick?"

"What do you mean?" She asked.

"Like, when you get sick, are you ever really warm?"

She thought about it, "I suppose if I have a fever, yeah. Why?"

"Lance is sick, and he's really warm. I brought him something to drink like Shiro said to do, and I noticed he was really burning up." Keith put his hands on his hips, "Is that normal?"

"As long as his fever isn't too bad, yes." Pidge said with a straight face, but in her mind she was grinning. Seeing Keith concerned for Lance was so cute. "But you _could_ put a fan in his room. That's what I do."

"A fan, huh?" He said, mostly to himself, "I think I have one. Thanks, Pidge."

"I'm here to help!" She said with a smile, watching him jog down the hall toward his room before heading back to the shower.

Keith practically ran back to his room, quickly fishing the fan out of his closet and taking it to Lance's room. Trying to be as quiet as possible, he propped the fan up on a desk chair, pointing it at Lance's bed. He turned it on the medium setting, traveling to Lance's side to make sure the cool air was reaching him. Satisfied that it was, he left the room to once again roam the halls.

Deciding that he could go for a run, he went to the training room. To his surprise, Hunk was there with Coran. They looked up as he entered, and Coran greeted him, "Keith, hello! Where's Lance? Don't you two usually train together in the morning?"

"Yeah," Keith scratched the back of his head, "He's sick today, so it's just me."

"Lance is sick?" Hunk asked, "What, with like, the flu?"

"Something like that." Keith said, sitting on a weight bench next to Hunk, "Why are you guys here?"

Hunk held up his arm to show off the invisible muscles he had, "I'm working on bulking up, so I asked Coran to be my spotter."

"Nice." Keith nodded, "I think I'm going to run for a little bit."

"Allura is on the track if you want someone to run with." Coran said, and then looked down at Hunk, "Alright! Let's go, Hunk, feel the burn!"

Keith jogged to the room adjacent to the one they were in now, a much larger space with a built in track for running. Sure enough, Allura was there, jogging on the long stretch toward him. Her light hair was pulled up into a bun, which bounced on the top of her head. She waved as she neared him, saying, "Hello, Keith."

He took up a position next to her, and together they started a lap around the track, "Hey." He said back.

"Where's Lance?" She asked.

"Why does everyone ask that?" He muttered.

"Well," she paused, "usually if I see one of you, I see the other. It's common to see you two together, so I thought maybe he'd be here too. But that doesn't seem to be the case."

He shook his head, "He's not feeling good, so he's staying in bed."

"Oh no," Allura looked slightly worried, "is he alright?"

"I think so. I brought him something to drink like Shiro said, and a fan to keep him cool, because Pidge said that's what he does to keep cool when he's sick." Keith explained.

"But he's by himself?"

"Yeah."

Allura glanced at him, "When I'm sick, I used to like it when my mother stayed with me."

Keith met her gaze, "Lance told me not to. He said there wasn't a reason to."

She arched an eyebrow, "He was lying, obviously. I've found that Lance is a lot like a girl. He says one thing, but most of the time he means the other."

"So you're saying that even though he told me not to stay, he really wanted me to stay?" Keith looked up at the ceiling. That was way too complicated.

"Precisely."

"So I should go back?"

"If you think that's what you should do."

With a look of determination, Keith finished the lap they were on, and then bid Allura farewell. "Thanks for the advice!" He called, jogging out of the track room.

She crossed her arms as he left, "Really, why don't they just say they're dating? Everyone knows."

Jogging toward Lance's room, Keith felt like kicking himself. Why hadn't he realized that Lance really wanted him to stay? Was he stupid? He should have understood, being Lance's partner.

He found himself standing with his back against the door, staring at Lance's sleeping form. He was lying on his right side, facing away from Keith. He wondered if he should wake him or not, being sick, he should get rest. Deciding to leave him sleep, Keith slipped underneath the covers to lay on his back next to Lance.

The latter was putting off so much body heat, Keith thought he could have been in a sauna. He rolled onto his right side, staring at Lance's back. He felt warmth in his stomach every time he saw Lance, his heart soaring even at his mere thought. So seeing him this way made him feel helpless. He wanted to make Lance feel better, but he wasn't sure how. How was someone like him supposed to do anything for a guy like Lance?

As if he could hear his thoughts, Lance rolled over to face Keith, his eyes fluttering open. Keith felt his cheeks redden at their closeness. It wasn't the first time they'd been that close, but Keith could never help the way his body reacted to those eyes of Lance's.

"Keith, I told you you're going to get sick." Lance muttered. Despite his words, he nestled his head against Keith's chest.

"I don't care." He whispered, putting an arm around Lance.

"But then I'll have to take care of you." Lance said, "That's so much work."

"Thanks."

"Just kidding."

Lance's grip loosened on Keith's sweatshirt, his arms now moving to wrap around him, underneath the blankets, his right leg overlapping Keith's. "Keith?"

"Hmm?" He asked, looking down at his head. His fingers absentmindedly ran through his short hair, something he knew Lance loved the most.

"Thanks for coming back."

Keith smiled, tightening his embrace, "Of course."

They stayed like that the rest of the day, both of them falling asleep in each other's embrace.

And two days later found Keith throwing up in a bucket, Lance holding his hair back and laughing as he did, "I told you I'd get you sick!"

"Shut up, moron!"

 _ **A/N: Thanks for reading, and I really hope you like it! I'm a sucker for Klance, so I hope this goes over well. Tell me what you all think !**_


	2. The One where Keith got it all Wrong

**The One Where Keith got it all Wrong**

* * *

If there was one thing Lance was good at, it was talking. The guy never shut up about anything, especially when the topic was about himself. So when the day came that Lance hardly said a word, Keith found himself wondering what in the universe was going on.

They had spent the night before together, so naturally Keith slept in his own bed that night. Sleeping with Lance was his favorite thing to do, but truth be told, he didn't get much sleep when he did.

His alarm woke him at six o'clock sharp, and he groaned as he sat up. No matter how much he liked to razzle Lance up about sleeping in, he yearned to every day. Rubbing his eyes, Keith took a drink of water before dressing in a black t-shirt and sweatpants. Taking a quick glance at himself in the mirror, he opened the door and whisked into the hall, heading to Lance's room to wake the lump up.

When he got there, he knocked and called, "Lance, wake up."

When there was no answer, he rolled his eyes and crossed his arms. He couldn't really be sick again, could he. With that in mind, he said, "If you try to say you're sick again, I'll kick you in the-"

"Keith?"

He jumped as Pidge appeared, raising an eyebrow, "What are you doing?"

"I-I came to wake Lance up." He stuttered, caught off guard by her sudden appearance.

"Uh-hu, well Lance is already awake and in the training room." Pidge said shrugging her shoulders, "He said something about getting stronger so he didn't let the team down again."

"What?" Keith asked, "When did he let the team down the first time?"

"That's what I said, but he seemed determined." Pidge held a hand to her chin, "Maybe you should go ask him about it."

Keith looked down at the floor, "Yeah maybe."

"Okay, see you later."

"Yeah, see you." Keith said, watching her hastily sidle past him. What was she in such a big hurry for?

Deciding to take her advice and talk to Lance about what he meant, Keith made his way to the training room. Lance occasionally got these thoughts in his head that didn't belong there. He would sometimes act like his usual self, but under the goofy surface he was really hurting. Keith knew he put a lot of pressure on himself as the Blue Paladin, not wanting to let anyone on the team down. Of course he never had to worry because they had his back just as much as he had theirs, but there was never getting through that thick skull of his.

Completely ready to knock some sense into his boyfriend, Keith strode into the training room looking around sharply for him. After a moment, he realized that Lance wasn't there. Was Pidge just pulling his leg, or had he actually been there and left already? It wouldn't come as a surprise to Keith, really.

A few moments later found him standing outside the kitchen with Coran, whose mustache was damp with...whatever it was he was drinking. Keith looked into the taller man's cup with a weathered eye, before taking the cup of coffee that Coran held out to him. He thanked him and said, "Wouldn't this be easier, you know, _inside_ the kitchen?"

"I like the view out here better." Coran said.

"Okay, well I'm going in." Keith muttered, stepping around Coran.

But the other man stepped in front of the door, blocking his path, "You can't go in there."

"What? Why?"

"Because..." Coran paused, "it's under renovations."

"Renovations?" Keith scratched his chest, "Since when?"

"This morning."

"Oh, okay then."

So Lance wasn't in the kitchen either because of the renovations. It was strange that he was awake already, even more strange that he wasn't in the kitchen. He hadn't even bothered to see Keith either. It was strange of him, was he in one of his low moods again?

"And that's how I got my first pet." Coran said excitedly, and Keith realized he had been recanting one of his many stories.

"Oh...that's great, Coran." Keith said half-heartedly.

"What's wrong, my boy?" Coran asked, leaning against the wall, "I may not be versed in psychological counseling, but I do my best when I'm needed."

Keith smiled to himself, "Thanks, but I don't need it. Just a little tired I think."

"Then get some more sleep." Coran said, taking another drink from his mug, "You're always up so early, why don't you let yourself sleep in every now and then. It never hurts."

"Yeah," Keith said to himself, "maybe you're right. Oh, and Coran, have you seen Lance by any chance?"

Coran suddenly grew very quiet and looked anywhere but at Keith, "Have I seen Lance?" He asked, his voice cracking slightly, "I...uh, no I don't think I've seen him this morning. Have you tried the bridge yet?"

"Hmm, no not yet. I suppose I could check there." Keeping his eyes trained on the ground, Keith ventured across the castle ship to the bridge. Along the way, he ran into Hunk, who was holding something behind his back.

The Yellow Paladin squeaked when he saw him, his face glowing scarlet, "Keith!"

"Hey Hunk," Keith greeted, "What's that?"

"What's what?" Hunk asked, turning slightly as Keith tried taking a look at what he was holding.

He pointed over his shoulder, "That thing you have behind your back."

"What thing, I don't have a thing." Hunk answered quickly, again turning to avoid letting Keith see what he had, "What's that?" He asked, pointing at Keith's hands.

"What-?" Keith looked down, giving Hunk the opportunity to slip past him without letting him see what he had, "Hey! Hunk!"

"Sorry, gotta go," Hunk backpedaled, "I have a...an important thing I need to do!"

Keith had no idea what was so pressing that Hunk had to do, but ignored it. It wasn't the strangest thing that had ever happened. Still, the curiosity of what Hunk had behind his back was getting to him. The fact that he wouldn't let him see it either, was also killing him. Was there something going on that he didn't know about? Impossible. Keith knew everything that was happening around the castle.

Then again, he had noticed that the others were whispering to each other a lot, and those whispers would immediately stop when he came into the room. There were also a lot of nights that Lance didn't come back to his room until late, leaving Keith lying alone in the soft sheets.

Running a hand through his hair, he hit the button to open the door to the bridge. Allura was there, as usual, looking through a cluster of star maps. Keith liked to look through them with her sometimes, still in awe of how beautiful they were. She looked up as he entered, the door hissing closed behind him, "Hello, Keith."

"Hey." He squatted on the floor next to her chair. After a moment of looking at the star map, he pointed around asking, "Anything worthwhile?"

"Hmm." She looked up, her eyes illuminated by the blue lights of the stars, "According to my calculations, we should be traveling close enough to see a meteor shower to the north. It won't happen until the later hours, so we have time to prepare if anyone wants to see it."

"Sounds exciting." He said, and then, "Lance wasn't here by any chance, was he?"

"Lance? You just missed him." She said, but her voice sounded like she made that up on the spot, "I think he said something about the training room."

"The training room?" Keith plopped down onto his behind, scratching his head, "Pidge just said he was there, but when I went, he wasn't."

"Oh!" Allura looked away, shuffling the star map, and blushed, "Then maybe the kitchen?"

"Already checked." Keith muttered, drumming his fingers on the floor, "Apparently it's being renovated."

"Um...then..."

"Is there something I'm missing?" He asked, resting his chin in his hand, and Allura shifted in her seat, "Is there something everyone else knows that I don't?"

"Like what?" She asked.

He looked up at her and asked what had been nagging at him the whole time, "Is Lance avoiding me?"

She blinked, "What?"

"Is he avoiding me?" He repeated.

"Why would he be avoiding you?" She asked nonchalantly.

"I don't know..." Keith sighed. He found that he could always confide in Allura about personal things because she was good at listening and giving advice. He and Lance still hadn't told anyone about their relationship, so would it be okay to tell Allura without asking Lance first?

He was warring with himself whether or not to, when Allura asked, "Is there something that _I_ don't know about?"

Keith sighed, straightening his legs to get comfortable on the floor, "Kind of, I guess."

"You guess?" She peeked over the armrest of the chair.

"Lance and I..." He started.

Her eyes bored into him, "Yes?"

"We're..."

"Go on."

"We're sort of," He rubbed the back of his head, "together."

"Together?"

"You know, _together_." He emphasized, "Like, a couple." Allura burst out laughing, making him glare at her, "What's so funny?"

"Ooooh," She clutched her stomach, "you looked so embarrassed, as if I didn't know."

"What?" He asked in surprise.

"Oh, please, Keith, it's blatantly obvious that you and Lance are in love." She clasped her fingers together, holding them to her cheek, "Star crossed lovers!"

"How did you know?" He felt his cheeks blush. If she knew, did the others?

Her smile turned dark as she leaned in close to his face, "There's nothing I don't know, Keith."

"Did Lance tell you?"

"No," She rested her chin in her palm, "my little friends did."

As if on que, the tiny mice that followed Allura around ran across the floor to jump up into her lap. She giggled, "They tell me all sorts of things."

Keith shrunk so that he was eye level with them, "Maybe they should keep their little mouths shut."

Allura only smiled, going back to the original question, "So, you think Lance is avoiding you?"

Sulking once again, Keith said, "I don't know, I feel like he has been lately. And I haven't seen him at all today. Everyone's acting weird actually. Did I do something?"

"Hmm." Allura looked down at him, "Not that I know of."

"Have you noticed if he looked down recently?"

"What do you mean, 'down'?"

"You know, sad." Keith explained.

"I don't think I've ever seen Lance really sad before." Allura said, holding a finger to her chin, "So, no, I haven't noticed him being sad. And I don't think he's avoiding you. I think he's just..." She paused, making him look up at her, "being Lance!"

He shrugged, "I guess."

"I wouldn't worry too much about it." She said, watching him rise to his feet.

"Hey Allura," He said softly, "could you keep what I said about me and Lance quiet for now?"

She smiled, "Of course."

A sullen Keith sulked through the hallway, wondering where everyone had run off to. He still hadn't seen Lance, or Shiro for that matter. Not that he minded, being a lone wolf, but Keith liked to see Lance's smile. If he was truly avoiding him for some reason, Keith would feel terrible about it.

Since meeting Lance, Keith had never felt more comfortable around a person in his life. It may not have started that way, but their rivalry had slowly given way to their feelings, and now Keith didn't want to think about his life without Lance.

If he was avoiding him, did that mean he wanted to end things? That's how it always started, wasn't it? If that's what Lance wanted, then Keith would agree, despite the fact that it would probably crush him. He knew he could fight him, but what use was it to force someone into a relationship when they didn't want to be? It would benefit no one.

With those thoughts distracting him, his foot caught on a floor panel whose edge was slightly bent upward. He fell forward, throwing his arms out to catch himself when he hit the floor. But before he could, a pair of arms caught him under his own. He clutched a pair of firm upper arms until he got his balance, and then looked up into Lance's grin, "Falling for me, Keith?"

"Don't you think it's a little late to be asking that?" He muttered, regaining his balance.

"Just checking." Lance said, smoothing Keith's t-shirt.

"Where have you been?" He asked, "I've been running all over the place looking for you."

"Oh, you know...I've been doing stuff, Keith." Lance shrugged, "...Things..."

"Stuff and things." Keith muttered, "Good excuse."

Lance's smile dimmed, and he asked, "What's got you so grumpy?"

"I'm not grumpy!" Keith said, only making him sound more grumpy. After a moment, he crossed his arms, looking away from Lance, "I just thought that maybe you were avoiding me."

"Avoiding you?"

"Avoiding me."

Lance snorted, "Why would I be avoiding you?"

"I don't know, you tell me." Keith poked his chest, "Everyone's given me the run around today trying to find you, like they were purposely sending me in the wrong direction."

"Don't be such a girl, Keith." Lance put his hands on his hips, looking down at Keith with a smug smile, "You're way overthinking things."

"Then what?" Keith asked, "Something is going on around here, and I want to know what."

"Let me enlighten you." Lance said, steering him in the direction he had been coming from, "Let's go to the kitchen."

"But it's under renovations." Keith said.

Lance stared dumbly at him, muttering, "No it's not."

They walked in silence, shoulder to shoulder, and Keith resisted the urge to reach out and grab Lance's hand. How was he supposed to act angry when he was holding the idiot's hand?

Before opening the door to the kitchen, Lance stopped him and said loudly, "Okay, Keith, let's get some coffee."

Keith frowned, "Okay? You don't have to shout, I'm literally standing right here."

Lance paused for a tick longer than normal before opening the door to a pitch black kitchen. Something was wrong, Keith could feel the tension in the air. He reached out to grab hold of Lance to stop him from going in, when the lights suddenly flicked on.

He blinked, and just as sudden as the lights had come on, everyone jumped up with streamers yelling, "Happy Birthday, Keith!"

"What's...?" He muttered, looking around the room. A banner that read 'Happy Birthday' in red letters was hanging from the ceiling, along with streamers. The Paladins, and Coran and Allura, were all wearing pointy party hats, grinning at him from around the table. Placed on the middle of it, was a round cake with brown frosting that said, 'Happy Birthday, Keith' on it.

Slowly the realization hit him. All of the whispers, the late nights that Lance was gone, the strange behavior from everyone that day, it had all been to plan a surprise party for him. His puzzled look slowly melted away to a small smile as he shook his head and laughed, "I didn't even remember that it was my birthday, today."

Lance grinned, "We didn't figure you would, so we had to remind you!"

"It took a lot of work keeping it a secret from you, but it payed off." Shiro gave him a thumbs up, "Were you surprised?"

"You bet he was!" Coran shouted, and then held up a camera Pidge had given him, "I even caught the moment on this copy device!"

They spent the night laughing together and eating the chocolate cake that Hunk had been smuggling in when Keith caught him in the hall. Pidge set up the camera to time out a picture, and the group all crammed in just in time for the flash. After a while, they journeyed up to the bridge to watch the meteor shower Allura had spoken of. Keith stood next to Lance as they did, and the latter clasped their fingers together as the lights fell through the open space.

After it was over, they all wished Keith a happy birthday again, before retiring to bed. Lance and Keith walked hand in hand down the hall, and Lance looked down at him, asking, "Want to stay in my room tonight?"

Keith nodded.

Once snugly in bed, Keith with his head and arm on Lance's chest, Lance said, "So maybe I was avoiding you, but not for the reason you thought."

Keith made a sound in his chest, gripping the blankets at Lance's side tighter. Lance's fingers lightly traced over his arm, sending goosebumps up his pale skin, "Sorry I don't have a cool present for you, but I figured just my presence was gift enough."

This coaxed a small laugh out of Keith, who craned his neck to look up at Lance, "What a shitty present."

"Aw come on, you could be stuck with me for life, so you better get used to it." Lance said, closing his eyes.

Keith's face reddened. Forever? What did that mean? He put his head back down on Lance's chest, feeling positively giddy at those words.

"Keith?" Lance asked after a while, his fingers now traveling to his black hair.

"Hmm?"

"Never mind."

Once again, Keith looked up at him, "What-?" The rest of his sentence was cut off by Lance's lips on his, the hand that had been playing in his hair now holding the back of his head firmly. Keith's heart was pounding so hard he thought it would beat right out of his chest, as his hand slowly slid up Lance's bare chest.

Lance broke their kiss to shift their positions, until he was hovering over Keith's body, held up by his forearms. Slowly lowering himself down, they kissed again, Keith wrapping his lean arms around Lance's shoulders to pull him in closer. Once again, Lance broke their kiss, leaning away only enough to rest his forehead against Keith's. He laughed once, his voice heavy with lust, "I never said I didn't have a present for you."

Keith looked up at him, his face flushed, "You shouldn't have."

Lance grinned but didn't say another word as he trailed kisses lower and lower, "Happy Birthday, Keith."

* * *

 _ **I just want to say thank you again for reading! I'm sorry I don't have much to say at the moment, but I just want you to know that I intend to plug away as much as I can at these one shots! Also, if you have any ideas of a cute or serious one-shot, I'm all ears! I like to cater to my followers as much as I can, so let me know if you want to see something!**_


	3. The One Where Lance Needed Cheering Up

**The One Where Lance Needed Cheering Up**

* * *

Here's the thing about Lance: he wants everyone to be happy. If he notices someone with even the slightest negative change in their behavior, he'll immediately begin his magic. Lance would never pry into someone's personal life, so he does his best to make sure the person knows he's there for them. Sometimes he gets so wrapped up in making others feel better, that he doesn't notice when he himself is hurting.

Lance would never admit to anyone when he felt sad. He was supposed to be the happy-go-lucky member of the team, the one who supported everyone. When members became more useful, it was Lance's duty to shine the light on them, even if it meant being overshadowed. He's always accepted that fact, but sometimes he wished at least one of his team members would reach out to him.

Of course he always had Keith, but he didn't want their relationship to suffer because of his insecurities. It made him terrified to think that Keith might find him pathetic because of his fears, so Lance would never bring it up around him, choosing instead to hide his feelings in order to make Keith worry less about him. What a coward.

On this particular day, Lance was feeling especially down. He didn't have a reason for it, other than the fact that he was homesick. Sometimes he got angry with himself at feeling sad, when there was nothing to even be sad about in the first place.

He supposed it stemmed from the way Shiro had snapped at him earlier in the day. It was always kind of a blow to Lance when Shiro put down his ideas, because he'd looked up to him for so long. All Lance really wanted was for Shiro to acknowledge his efforts, just once, but usually that wasn't the case.

So, after the incident with Shiro, Lance left the bridge to meander around the ship. His low spirits didn't sprout any ideas for fun, so he was hoping to come across Keith on his walk. The only other paladin that had been on the bridge, was Pidge, with Allura and Coran of course, so Lance wanted nothing more than to just collapse into his boyfriend's arms and complain about how tired he was.

But no matter where he looked, he just couldn't find him.

The fact that he couldn't, only fueled his downcast mood, and he felt the familiar burn at the back of his throat as his eyes started to sting. Not wanting anyone to find him crying, he retreated back to his room to listen to music.

Music always helped him with his moods, so he figured that, by listening to something upbeat, his sadness would go away. Plopping down on his stomach, in bed, he slid his headphones on and cradled his head in his arms, closing his eyes.

He knew he fell asleep, because it was only when Keith flopped over his back and rested his chin on Lance's shoulder, that he finally realized his boyfriend had been knocking on his door for a few minutes, "Hey, Keith."

"What are you doing?" Keith muttered, removing the headphones from Lance's head.

"Trying to block out how bad you smell." Lance pinched his nose, "You were training again, huh?"

Keith sniffed his armpit and grimaced, "It's not that bad."

"My eyes are watering."

"They're all red, are you sick again?" Keith asked, rolling off of him so that he was resting on his back.

"Allergies probably." Lance muttered, looking away from the black-haired boy. He was hoping that the redness would have gone away by now.

Keith arched an eyebrow, "Can you even get allergies in space?"

"Looks like it." Lance smiled at him, "I checked the gym before and I didn't see you."

"Oh, really?" Keith folded his arms behind his head, "Maybe I was taking a break. Why? Did you want to train with me?"

Lance snorted, "Yeah, no. I was just…bored."

Keith shifted so that he was on his side, facing Lance. Reaching out, he caught some of Lance's soft hair between his fingers, "I saw Pidge on my way here."

"Oh?"

"She told me something happened with Shiro."

Lance felt the warmth settle over his face, so he buried it in his blankets, "What do you mean?"

"You tell me." Keith said, "What happened?"

"He just…got angry with me," Lance faked a chuckle, "it was no big deal. I know he's under a lot of stress lately. Honestly, I'm not worried about it." When Keith didn't say anything, he glanced over at him out of the corner of his eye. He had his head in his palm, propped up by his elbow, face stoic as he chewed the inside of his lip. Lance arched an eyebrow, "Keith?"

"You're always like this. It's really frustrating, you know that?"

Keith's sudden tone made Lance's eyes widen, "What…?"

"You don't tell me anything." Keith sat up straight, facing him, "You always try to deflect my questions when they're about how you're feeling. You know you can tell me when you feel down, right? I'm your partner, I'm supposed to be the one you go to for help. You can't always be happy, Lance, do you think I'm stupid? I know when you don't feel right, so why don't you ever tell me? Is it because you don't trust me?"

It was Lance's turn to sit up, reaching out to grasp Keith's hands, "Of course I trust you! I just…" He looked away, how was he supposed to tell him? He'd never shared his feelings with anyone before.

"Lance, look at me." Keith demanded, turning Lance's head with his fingers when he didn't obey, "I _want_ you to tell me. _I_ want to be the one to help _you_ for a change. You always go around and cheer up everyone else, but who cheers you up? You can't tell me you never get sad. I know how much you miss home, and how much it bothers you that you're missing out on your siblings' lives. But that's all I know. I want to know more, Lance. Let me in for once."

His words struck Lance like lightning. Keith had never been this passionate about anything other than destroying the Galra Empire, so hearing him get so worked up over Lance made him tear up. After such a mentally exhausting day, it was nice just hearing Keith profess such feelings to him. Leaning forward, Lance rested his forehead on Keith's shoulder, "I'm afraid to."

"Afraid of what?" Keith asked.

"That if I tell you the things that bother me, you'll think I'm weak." Lance said quietly, "Or you'll think I'm pathetic."

"Lance, you fricken idiot." Keith said lightly, putting a hand on the back of his head, "You're my boyfriend, the person I care about the most, I would never think that. I love you too much."

Lance picked his head up in surprise, staring back at Keith with wide eyes, "You…what?"

"Yeah, you heard me." Keith's face was determined, but his rosy cheeks gave away his embarrassment, "I love you, Lance. Why do you think I'm trying so hard to get you to let me into your head?"

Lance toppled forward, wrapping his arms around Keith as they fell backwards onto the bed, "I love you too, Keith. I'm so happy you said it. I've wanted to tell you for a while, but the timing's never been right." He said, and then, "Today's been really exhausting. I'm so tired."

"Yeah?" Keith asked, looking at him out of the corner of his eye.

"I've spent my entire life looking up to Shiro." Lance started, "I still do, so when he puts me down in front of the team, it hurts a lot more than it should. I feel like he approves of everyone but me, so what does that mean? Is there something wrong with me? Am I that bad to be around?"

"No, and don't ever think that." Keith demanded.

"Then why?" Lance's voice cracked, "Why does he treat me like that? Nothing I do is ever good enough for him. We're supposed to be a team, and we were! But he's so different from before he disappeared and came back. I miss the old Shiro."

"Have you talked to him?" Keith asked, lightly tracing his fingers over Lance's back, "Maybe if you tried explaining how his behavior is affecting you, he'd understand that he's being too harsh. I don't think Shiro means it, he's just been under a lot of pressure lately."

"I know." Lance sighed, "That's why I try not to let it get to me, but sometimes it's so hard. I just want him to acknowledge that I did something good for a change, instead of telling me about all my mistakes. I know when I mess up, I do it a lot, but it would be nice if he, or anyone-" He choked, and then said softly, "All I want is for someone to tell me I did good."

Keith's arms rose up to wrap tightly around him, "Of course you do, Lance. You're amazing out there."

"Then why don't I feel like it?" He asked, "My whole life, I've only been told how I mess things up, or how I'm never going to amount to anything. Why do you think I hated you when we first met?" Lance smiled at the thought, "You were number one. When people at the Garrison talked about a good pilot, someone with a great future, they talked about you. But me? I was never going to be a pilot. I was going to be in the lowest rank for the rest of my life, because no one gave me a chance."

"And now look at you." Keith said with a smile, "Look how far you've come."

"What do you mean?" Lance asked, "I'm the weakest part of the team."

"Says who?" Keith asked, "Has anyone actually told you that?"

"No…"

Keith rolled over so that they were on their sides, facing each other, "Exactly. Think about it, Lance. You were the one the blue lion responded to. _You're_ the reason Voltron even came back into existence. If I was such a great pilot with a bright future, then why didn't the blue lion choose me? Or anyone else for that matter? You were the start to all of this. How many planets and solar systems have we liberated all because the blue lion chose you?"

Lance remained silent, so Keith continued, "And speaking of, you're a _paladin_ of _Voltron_. The entire universe knows who we are, they're out there believing in us and what we're capable of. We've accomplished so much together that we wouldn't have been able to do alone. You're a part of all this. Screw the Garrison! They said you'd never be a pilot, that you didn't have a future, and yet here you are, with planets in every galaxy idolizing you. You're literally saving the universe! What are the people at the Garrison doing?"

Keith's words brought a gentle peace over Lance. Everything he'd said, was what Lance longed to hear. This whole time, all he wanted to know was that he wasn't a failure. Now, after everything Keith said, he felt refreshed, "Thank you, Keith."

The other boy smiled softly, "From now on, tell me when you're feeling down. I'm chalk full of nice things to say about you."

"Oh?" Lance asked, arching an eyebrow, "Like what?"

Keith shook his head, "I have to save my ultimate compliments for later."

"You're impossible." Lance said, snuggling up against Keith's chest, "But I really appreciate it. It felt really nice to actually say those things out loud. I hope you don't think I'm childish for it."

"I already told you, stupid," Keith's voice rumbled in his chest, "I would never think less of you for something like that."

"Want to go get something to eat?" Lance asked after a moment.

"I thought you'd never ask."

After giving Lance a moment to properly compose himself, both of them headed out toward the kitchen. They walked in a comfortable silence, and not for the first time, Lance wondered what he did to deserve Keith. This boy who loved him, and who he loved back.

When they arrived in the kitchen, the only other person in the room, was Shiro. Lance immediately tensed up, but Keith bumped him with his arm and smiled, "Hey, Shiro."

"Keith, Lance, you're up late." Shiro said, looking up from something he was reading on his hologram wristband.

"I could say the same to you." Keith sat down across from him, moving over to allow Lance to sit next to him, "Do you ever sleep?"

"Lately I've been having some trouble, so Coran whipped up this tea to help me get drowsy." Shiro explained, "But it doesn't taste very well, so it takes me a bit longer than usual to down it."

"Yeah, I noticed you've been agitated lately," Keith said, making Lance glance questioningly at him. Keith caught his hand under the table and gave it a squeeze, "Everything okay?"

Shiro sighed, dragging a hand through his white bangs, "I just don't feel like myself lately. I'm sorry if I seem negative to you."

"It's okay, we're just concerned for your health is all. I'll be right back." Keith said, suddenly standing up, "Gotta use the bathroom."

Lance watched him leave, and then turned back to Shiro, who had also been watching Keith. An awkward silence fell between them, and Lance twiddled his thumbs under the table. Just as he was about to say something nonchalant, Shiro cleared his throat, saying, "Lance, I…I want to apologize for before. I was out of line. Everyone should be able to speak up and voice their ideas, so I don't want you to feel like you can't. I don't know what's wrong with me."

Lance was surprised at this sudden confession from Shiro, completely catching him off guard. Taking a moment to choose his words, he finally said, "To be honest, Shiro, it really hurt. Sometimes I feel like you don't consider me part of the team."

"Please don't ever think that." Shiro leaned forward, his eyes radiating his concern, "We wouldn't be Voltron without you. I'm sorry, Lance. I don't know how I can convey to you how much you being here means to me. You helped save me, after all."

"Then why do you always put me down?" Lance asked quietly, staring down at the table, "Why am I never good enough?"

"You are, Lance. You're one of the strongest people I know." Shiro rested his elbows on the table, cradling his head in his hands, "Stronger than me, that's for sure."

"What?" This made Lance look up, "I'm not stronger than you. You're the pilot of the black lion!"

"Just because I'm the leader, doesn't make me stronger." Shiro said, "If anything, I'm the weakest one here. Ever since I disappeared and came back, I feel like I'm just floating around. Like I don't belong anywhere, but know that I'm supposed to be here. If I'm being completely honest, I don't think that I deserve to be the leader of Voltron."

"That's ridiculous!" Lance stood up, "Of course you do! You're the one who's held us all together when we thought we were going to fall apart! You're the voice in battle telling us that everything is going to be alright. There's no one that could do that for us, Shiro. The black lion didn't choose you for nothing, it chose you because you're a great leader."

Shiro smiled at that, "Thank you for saying that, Lance."

"Don't forget it, either!"

"To be honest, I wouldn't have known that I made you upset. Keith told me how bad I made you feel, so I was here trying to think of how to apologize. He was pretty angry with me." Shiro smiled sheepishly.

Lance blinked, "Keith told you?"

"Yeah, he said he talked to Pidge." Shiro said, "I don't think I've seen him that angry outside of battle. It was a little awkward to see him acting so cordial just now."

So Keith had known from the start. He hadn't come to his room to find out what happened, he purposely came there to make sure Lance was alright. His chest blossomed with warmth at the thought of his boyfriend sticking up for him against Shiro. He really was amazing.

"Speaking of, Keith's taking a long time in the bathroom, maybe you should see if he's okay." Shiro winked, and Lance got the hint that he wanted to be alone for now.

Before he left the kitchen, he turned back and said, "Shiro? You're really okay, right? It's just the sleep that's getting to you?"

"Yeah, why?" He asked.

"Just making sure." Lance said with a smile, and pushed the door open. Keith was standing out in the hallway, leaning against the wall with his arms folded and one leg propped up, "What are you doing out here?"

"I thought I'd give you your space, to talk things out with Shiro." Keith explained, pushing himself off of the wall, "Did you really think I had to go to the bathroom?"

Lance shot him a look, "You knew what happened the whole time? Why didn't you say so?"

"Because then you wouldn't have opened up to me." Keith said.

"Did you really yell at Shiro?"

"Yep."

Lance felt himself blush, and grinned, "You're something else, Keith Kogane."

"So? How did it go?" Keith asked, walking side by side with him as they journeyed back to Lance's room, "Did you tell him how you felt?"

Lance nodded, "Yeah, I did. It went well, I feel better now that I actually told him. I think things will get better from now on. I just hope he gets some sleep soon."

"Me too." Keith yawned, "Can I stay with you tonight?"

"You don't even need to ask me anymore." Lance snorted.

Once they were back in Lance's room, and tangled up in each other, Keith looked up at him as he rested his head on his chest, "We didn't even eat."

"Do you really want to get up to go get something?" Lance asked.

"No way." Keith muttered, followed by a loud stomach growl.

"Are you sure?" Lance asked.

"Mm-hm." Keith nodded, but his stomach growled again. A few moments of silence went by, before Lance started laughing. His obnoxious laugh was catchy, so it didn't take long for Keith to join in. When their laughter finally died down, Keith wiped his eyes and said, "Lance?"

"Hmm?" He hummed sleepily.

"I love you."

Lance smiled, kissing the top of his head, "I love you too, Keith."

* * *

 ** _A/N: So wow, it's been a while! I totally did NOT keep plugging away as I said I would on my last chapter. My deepest and sincerest apologies about that! Seriously!_**

 ** _I finished season 5 the other day and holy buckets! It was seriously so good, and my love for our dear paladins has increased even more! And can I just say…LOTOR. (We may be seeing him in later chapters, because he's become an obsession. A high-key obsession.)_**

 ** _So, I hope you all enjoyed this chapter, and stay tuned!_**

 ** _Until next time!_**


	4. The One Where Lance met Krolia

**The One Where Lance met Krolia**

* * *

It had been a shock to Lance's system when Keith had arrived back at the palace with a Galran leader in tow. As if Lotor hadn't been enough, now they had this one around! Just what in the quiznak did his other half think he was doing?

Who exactly this Galra lady was, was kept very hush hush aboard the palace. Of course Keith knew, along with Allura, Lotor, and Coran, but other than that the others could only guess. When they'd arrived, Keith had taken her directly to Lotor and Allura, not even making eye contact with Lance as he'd walked by.

That had been a slight blow to Lance's feelings. With Keith's work with the Blade of Marmora, their time spent together had grown scarcer by the minute. Until that moment, Lance hadn't seen Keith in more than two weeks. Now, when they finally got to see each other, the other boy had brushed past him like he was invisible.

Lance wouldn't think of it as a bad thing yet, however. The circumstances seemed to be pretty serious, so Keith was probably being his usual stoic self. Sometimes his lone wolf, introverted behavior really frustrated the extroverted Lance.

The five, Lotor, Allura, Coran, Keith, and the mystery Galra, had been on the bridge all afternoon, leaving Lance sitting on the floor outside of the sealed door. His knees were pulled up to his chest, arms wrapped tightly around his legs, and chin resting on his knees when Pidge found him.

She lightly kicked his foot with hers, saying, "You gonna sit out here all afternoon?"

He kept his eyes locked onto the door, muttering, "Yep."

"Why?"

"Because I haven't seen Keith in weeks." Lance said, "And I want to know why there are suddenly two high-ranking Galrans on this ship when we've been fighting them for how long."

Pidge shrugged, "I haven't seen Keith either, but you don't see me moping."

"Moping?" Lance finally looked at her, "Who's moping? Not me."

"Oh please, your face has 'mope' written all over it." She said, plopping down next to him, "What are you so worried about? That suddenly there will be an attack from Lotor and whoever that girl is?"

"No." Lance scoffed, "Obviously they wouldn't stand a chance against me. I'm just curious of who that was that Keith brought. Is she with us, or a prisoner?"

"She wasn't in handcuffs." Pidge reflected, "And she smiled once at Keith. Maybe she's from the Blade of Marmora and is working on something with him, and they needed to tell Lotor some top-secret information!"

Lance nodded, rubbing his chin thoughtfully, "You know, you're probably right, Pidge!"

"Am I ever wrong?"

They sat together for another hour, until Lance's leg cramped, and he sprawled across the floor, groaning, "How much longer is this going to take? I'm going crazy!"

Just as the words left his lips, the door to the bridge hissed open, and Keith strode through the threshold. He looked surprised to see Lance and Pidge on the floor, and then smiled, "Hey guys! I'd like to introduce you to someone. Where's Shiro and Hunk?"

"I'll go find them." Pidge said, rising to her feet, "Everything okay?"

Keith nodded, "Yeah, everything's fine."

The two boys watched Pidge jog down the hall in search of Shiro and Hunk, and when she disappeared, Lance looked at Keith. There were a few scratches on his neck and face, and a bruise on his cheek, which Lance stroked with his thumb, "Looks like you went through a rough one, this time."

Keith pressed his cheek into Lance's touch, closing his eyes as he leaned forward and felt his lover's arms wrap around him, "Yeah, it was."

"Are you alright?" Lance asked, glancing down at him from the corner of his eye, "You don't know how much I worry when you're gone."

Keith's hands bunched in the fabric of Lance's shirt, "I'm fine, thanks to Krolia."

"Who's Krolia-?"

The door behind them opened suddenly, and Lance looked up into the Galran eyes of the woman, towering over him by a full foot. His eyes widened, his mind still telling him that she was an enemy, and he swiftly let go of Keith to shove him behind him, protectively standing between them.

But Keith put a gentle hand on Lance's shoulder, stepped out from his lover's shield, " _This_ is Krolia."

The Galran woman peered down at Lance, her face drawn in a tight frown. The two locked eyes, both staring the other down in a duel of gazes. Despite feeling like he wanted to grab Keith and run, Lance stood his ground as the woman approached him. She stopped mere inches apart from him, bending down to his height, "Lance?"

He gulped, his eyes widening, "Yeah, that's my name."

Her hard gaze suddenly softened, and she smiled, "Did you just put yourself between my son and I?"

"Well yeah, it's still a little hard for me to trust the Galra yet-" He stopped as his brain finally processed what she'd said, "W-w-wait! Son? As in, child? Or is that a sort of metaphor for the sun, like a 'ray of hope' type thing?"

Krolia still smiled as she rose back to her full height, "You heard me correctly. Keith is my son."

Lance, still having trouble believing it, shuffled Keith next to her and glanced between the two. As he did, the resemblance became striking, and he felt his mouth fall open, "You're really his mom, huh?"

"Sure am." Krolia said, putting an arm around Keith's shoulders, "It's the nose isn't it?"

"Mm, I think more of the eyes…and hair." Lance said.

"Hey guys, what's going on?" Shiro's voice made them glance down the hall, where he, along with Pidge and Hunk, were approaching.

"I'd like everyone to meet Krolia." Keith said, smiling proudly, "My mother."

"Come again?" Hunk clasped his fingers together.

"Did you say, Mother?" Pidge sounded just as shocked as Hunk.

"Yeah, after all these years, it turns out she was still out there." Keith answered, "Who would have thought we would meet like this? And both working with the resistance."

"After I left you and your father, how could I not?" Krolia asked, her gaze soft as she looked at her son, "I knew eventually the Galra Empire would spread to Earth, so I did whatever I could to stop that from happening."

Shiro was the first one to step forward, extending his hand to her, "Any friend, or family, of Keith's is a friend of mine. Shiro."

"Thank you for taking care of my son, all of you." Krolia said, looking past the open door behind her, where Lotor stood next to Allura and Coran.

Pidge and Hunk went to speak more with Krolia, and Shiro journeyed onto the bridge next to Allura, leaving Lance and Keith standing side by side in the hallway. They watched as Krolia explained some alien mumbo-jumbo to the two nerdy paladins, who were soaking up the information like sponges.

"Hey Red, this sciencey talk is really making my head hurt, wanna get out of here?" Lance asked, winking at Keith.

The other boy shook his head in exasperation, "Aren't you Red now?"

Lance looked away, touching his chest over his heart, "You'll always be Red, Keith, I'm just a replacement until I can be Blue again."

Keith's hand wrapped around Lance's wrist, pulling him down the hallway in a rush. Lance followed with heated cheeks, stuttering, "K-Keith, where are we going?"

Keith came to an abrupt halt, nearly making Lance run into him, and when he turned around, Lance swore his heart stopped beating for a tick. His eyes were on fire, face red with determination (and maybe a little blush), and for the first time in a long time, Keith came alive with the passion of the Red Paladin. Lance's eyes widened as Keith's hands gripped the collar of his shirt, "You're _not_ my replacement." He said gently, and then rose up on his tip toes to press their lips together.

All the lonely nights they had spent without each other came pouring back to them, fueling Lance to press Keith into the wall as they stumbled for something to lean on. "God, I've missed you." He rested his arms on the wall on either side of Keith's head, the other boy's snaking up under Lance's sweatshirt. Gasping once at the feeling of Keith's touch on his bare skin, Lance became painfully aware of how their bodies were molded into each other.

"We should probably stop," He whispered, "what if someone finds us like this?"

"That's why I lead you this far away. It's fine." Keith muttered, leaning forward to try to capture Lance's lips again.

But he easily dodged Keith's hasty attack, saying, "Easy for you to say, now that Mommy Galra is here, I have to be extra careful. Something tells me she's protective of you."

Keith tilted his head to the side, making Lance's stomach flop, "Sometimes…I really want to break up with you."

Lance grinned, "Then why don't you?"

"Because, I love you, idiot."

With pink cheeks, Lance scratched the back of his head, "I was going for the, 'I'd never find anyone better', but I'll take that too."

Keith chuckled, pushing himself off the wall and into Lance's embrace, and buried his head in his shoulder. When he breathed in, he smelled the familiar smell of Lance's soap mixed with his one unique scent. It was the smell he thought of when he thought about home. "Who are you kidding, I could do way better than you if I wanted."

"You're not wrong." Lance agreed, reveling in the feel of his boyfriend in his arms, "So I'll count my blessings that you stay."

Keith leaned his head back to look up at him, "I'll always be by your side, Lance."

Lance smile, placing a gentle kiss on his forehead, "I know."

As they walked hand in hand back to the bridge, Keith looked up at Lance and said, "I suppose I should introduce you to my mother."

"You did already." Lance said, looking at him quizzically.

"I meant as my boyfriend." Keith smiled.

"Right. Geez, I've never been introduced to someone's parents before." Lance glanced up at the ceiling in thought, "What should I say? Is there something in Galran culture that I can do to impress her? I don't want her to think I'm disrespectful of her culture. I mean, I don't like it, but she can't help being Galran, right? So I can at least try-"

"I think you're over-thinking things." Keith muttered, "Just act how you normally do."

Lance opened his mouth to say something.

"On second thought," Keith interrupted, "maybe you should tone down the personality a bit for the first introductions."

"I'll do my best!" Lance held up a thumb.

"There you are!" They looked ahead, where the woman in question was striding toward them. Krolia came to a stop as they neared each other, and said, "Your friends are very remarkable. Those two, Hunk and Pidge, have quite an advanced knowledge of technology and the universe. Shiro is a good, strong leader. I had an enjoyable conversation about tactics with him. And Allura and Coran showed me the castle's technology and capability. I'm glad you've surrounded yourself with such great people."

"Me too." Keith smiled, and then looked at Lance, "I know you two have met, but there's one thing you don't know about Lance and me."

"Oh?" Krolia put a hand on her hip, eyeing the other boy carefully.

"He's my boyfriend." Keith said bluntly, making Lance's face burn.

"Yes, I can see he's a close friend of yours."

"No, what I mean is that we're in a relationship. One stronger than friendship." Keith explained, but Krolia didn't seem to quite get it.

So Lance helped him, "Krolia, I love Keith. More than anything, even myself. If it came down to it, I wouldn't hesitate to put myself between him and death." Keith's hand tightened its grip on his, and Lance looked down at him, "Because if I didn't have Keith, I wouldn't have anything. _That_ kind of relationship."

"Lance." Keith said.

"Ah," Krolia crossed her arms, "I understand now. You remind me of my feelings for his father." She smiled at memories only she could relive, "It is an honor to meet you, Lance. I hope those feelings never waiver, and your words remain true."

"You don't have to worry, ma'am," Lance said.

"Please, call me Krolia."

Later, when the other paladins were busy interrogating Keith about his recent missions, Krolia found Lance staring out the windows of the bridge. She stood next to him, watching his reflection in the glass, "Keith told me that you were the one who found the Blue Lion. Your heart is what started all of this."

"Ah geez, that guy." Lance smiled up at her, "He likes to exaggerate things. I'm sure any of them could have woken the Blue Lion if I wasn't there."

"The Lions don't respond to just anyone," Krolia said, "you must be worthy of their trust."

"Maybe I just got lucky then."

"Or perhaps you don't give yourself enough credit." Krolia glanced down at him, "I've only known you for a few hours, but even I can see you have a good heart, Lance. Your loyalty knows no bounds. You hold others' welfare above your own, selflessly acting on things even if it means bringing suffering upon yourself. That is why the Blue Lion chose you, and the reason my son is captivated by you."

Lance chuckled, "I think it's the other way around, Krolia. I'm the one captivated by him. Keith is so strong, and sometimes I feel like I'm weighing him down. It's why I constantly try to do things better. I want to be strong like him, so I can lift him up instead of drag him down. Keith is…so special to me."

"I can see from your words that you cherish him. I would be in no place to tell him who he can and can't have a relationship with, being that I left him as an infant. But, if I did," She looked down at him, "I would tell him never to let you go."

Lance felt his eyes widen, and tears burned at the back of his throat, "I-um...t-thank you."

"Your feats in battle also influence your favor with me. Keith has told me about a lot of those as well." Krolia leaned down so she could better stare into his eyes, "I also want to make one thing clear between us. What you said earlier, about putting yourself between him and death, did you mean that?"

"Of course." Lance's voice was sharp, "I would die for Keith, no hesitation."

"Then I hope you remember that." Krolia said, "If ever the situation arises, think back to this conversation. I'll hold you to those words."

Lance nodded, "I promise, Krolia, I won't ever let anything happen to Keith."

She smiled, patting his head, "From what I saw earlier, I believe you."

Later, when Keith was safely tucked away under Lance's sheets, he asked, "I saw you talking with Krolia before."

"Mm-hmm." Lance said sleepily.

"What did you talk about?"

Cracking one eye open, Lance said, "Nothing much."

"I don't like this. You're already making secrets with her."

"It was nice talking to her. She really…"

Lance trailed off, making Keith twist to look up at him, "She really what?"

"She reminded me of my mom." Lance squeezed his eyes shut, trying to will his tears away, "I didn't realize how much I missed her until today."

Keith's thumbs wiped away the tears that escaped, and he said, "I can't wait until I meet her."

"She'll love you." Lance chuckled, trying to cheer himself up.

"Of course she will."

"I think I'm starting to rub off on you."

"That's no good."

Lance couldn't fall asleep that night, chalk it up to excitement that his lover was finally back in his embrace, so he watched Keith sleeping in his arms, stroking his soft dark hair out of his face. If there was one thing he was sure would never fade, it was his love for that man. There were so many things about Lance's life that were messed up, things he wasn't sure were true, feelings that changed by the day. The only solid thing about that life, was Keith.

What Krolia had said before, about him remembering his promise to die for Keith if he had to, had really struck him. He'd known all along, but actually telling someone how he felt out loud had been somewhat of a relief to him. He wasn't sure how to take Krolia telling him to die, almost as if she didn't care about him, but he supposed he would do the same thing if he was her.

Finally, as he drifted off to sleep, his dreams were filled with his mother, and the tears in her eyes as Lance and Keith stepped through the door.

"Lance! Who is this?"

"Ah, well, Mom, this is Keith. The love of my life."

 ** _A/N: Look at me go! I got another chapter up less than a year after my other one. We're on a roll folks! But, in other news, it's Spring Break and I'm still busy like I'm in college. Though I've been doing some fun stuff. I had a ride along with my Paramedic friend, and it was lit._**

 ** _I played around with introducing my bb's to their parents, and I decided the Krolia route was easier to go with this time around. Perhaps our lads will get back to earth sometime during this one-shot story._**

 ** _As I'm running low on my creative juices, I want to open the floor to my followers. Are there any cute ideas you'd like to see come to life? I'd be more than happy to hear what you have to say!_**

 ** _Also, these one-shots are not in chronological order, so I might write something from recent seasons, and the next chapter might be from the first. Just so everyone knows!_**

 ** _Here's the chapter playlist!_**

 ** _1._** ** _Mine- Bazzi_**

 ** _2._** ** _Ain't Nobody Like You- Yung Bae_**

 ** _3._** ** _Crave- Tov Lo_**

 ** _4._** ** _Dynasty- MIIA_**

 ** _5._** ** _You Like Me (Cobble Remix)- Paris Jones_**

 ** _6._** ** _Afterlife- XYLO_**

 ** _As always, thank you to everyone who has read, reviewed, favorited, and followed this story_**

 ** _so far! You guys rock!_**

 ** _Until next time!_**


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